The recent Athens Banner-Herald story headlined “A Day in the Life of a Homeschooler” prompts me to call for those who wish to improve education in our public schools to take heed of the concepts emphasized in that story.

Reading the online comments on the article, the most popular comment included the following thoughts: “As a former home-school parent, I can tell you that it’s an oddly mixed bag: the people I encountered in that context tended to … be either what we call liberals or highly religious conservatives. … Overall, I have more concern about the effects of outside-the-home schooling on families that use it to replace real responsibility for, and involvement in, their children’s education, both official and personal.”

A former math teacher, Ms. Johnston suggested the schools offer exit interviews for former customers.

One of the most successful entrepreneurs for whom I had the privilege of working taught me to beware of the silent business killer. “The customers you have to worry about,” he said, “are the ones who stop coming in and never tell you why they left.”
In any service-oriented business, some customers will return time after time because their needs and wants are met. However, if customers quietly leave one by one, the reasons for their departure often go unnoticed.
Public education is everyone’s business, so I would invite those who have chosen to make themselves its most vocal supporters to reach out to the families they’ve lost.